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DIY Dutch Clips

About halfway through, Dutch said he was a proud cloner. I was extremely relieved to read that as I had made a pair of his namesake clips a few months ago. We had some discussion via PM and all is good. He said he would send along a pair of DC if I would post a thread on how much of a pain in the butt these things are to make using common tools.

Using scraps of aluminum that is 1/2 inch thick I made a rough outline of the clips. I had no idea of the actual dimensions except that they would need at least one inch slots for the straps. At work we have an industrial bandsaw and drillpress so I used those to rough out the basic shape. After that I had to use various files to get the final outline down to a finished piece I could live with. After probably 3-4 hours I still did not have anything fancy. They are pretty beefy weight-wise, I do not have a gram scale so I'm not sure of the actul weight. The hardest part was getting all of the rough edges inside of the slots filed down. There are still tool marks all over so they are really ugly, but they work. All in all, I would not make another pair if I did not have to.
Tony

Here are some pics:
And an action shot:

"The first time I saw a hammock, I remember thinking, 'Now I know what trees are for.'" --Jim Gaffigan, comedian

Aluminum fabrication

I love/hate working with aluminum.

I have made numerous prototype fittings for canoes from alu stock, ranging from 1/8" up to 3/8". Unfortunately I do not have a bandsaw, so any cutting that is not doable on a table saw has to be done with a Sawzall or by hand. To paraphrase Janis Joplin, "Oh Lord, wont ya buy me a water-jet cutter."

I don't know about you, but I always underestimate the abount of time it will take to fabricate pieces. Great way to waste (?) an entire Saturday......

One trick I learned: Plumbers sanding tape is great for smoothing edges. Tear off a strip about a foot long and use it like you were buffing a shoe. And the tape can be torn lengthwise for narrower areas.

One trick I learned: Plumbers sanding tape is great for smoothing edges. Tear off a strip about a foot long and use it like you were buffing a shoe. And the tape can be torn lengthwise for narrower areas.

Jim

Listen to this man as he he is wiser than his years. Plumbers aluminum oxide tape was shown to me by 2Q who does plumbing. It works great just as described. I had to make over a thousand Dutch clips using this exact shoe buffing method. Now it use this and my life is much better.

TAlaxander I will also send a piece of this sand paper. cleans up the sharp edges lickety split.

Files for aluminum

And Dutch, I am impressed with your patience in hand-finishing all of those DC's! I just assumed that they were tumbled in abrasives to remove the burrs. (BTW: I am as unsuperstitious as my Dad IS superstitious. But I am going to use my DCs pointing up in the future.)

I cannot justify a larger combo disc/belt sander, but that one from Harbour Freight is tempting. Maybe a Columbus Day present to myself....... Presents on Columbus Day ARE traditional, aren't they?

And Dutch, I am impressed with your patience in hand-finishing all of those DC's! I just assumed that they were tumbled in abrasives to remove the burrs. (BTW: I am as unsuperstitious as my Dad IS superstitious. But I am going to use my DCs pointing up in the future.)

I cannot justify a larger combo disc/belt sander, but that one from Harbour Freight is tempting. Maybe a Columbus Day present to myself....... Presents on Columbus Day ARE traditional, aren't they?

Jim

They were then tumbled although there was a time or 2 that I had to do a batch with polishing wheel on a bench grinder. Not fun as they get hot quick. The belt sander is one of the best investments I made. My hands use to get so sore after a batch and it took about 4 times as long as it does now. $50 bucks well spent. I also use to go through the alum oxide tape like crazy. I am still on my first belt for the sander. I'm sure the motor or the switch will fail sometime. But is got my money worth already.